Manufacturing Dissent since 1996
Listeners of This Is Hell! that love the show mention: moment of truth, progressive radio, best progressive, chuck always, indispensible, hellish, irregular, chuck is a great, correspondents, four hours, chuck is the best, thank you chuck, hangover, afghanistan, long form interviews, rotten, saturday morning, despair, capitalism, activists.
The This Is Hell! podcast is an incredibly insightful and thought-provoking show that covers a wide range of topics. The host, Chuck, is a skilled interviewer who allows his guests to speak at length and explores the direction the conversation naturally takes. The podcast is well-researched and expertly produced, making it a valuable resource for anyone interested in current affairs and progressive politics.
One of the best aspects of this podcast is the wide variety of guests it brings on. The show covers a vast scope of topics, ensuring that there is always something new and interesting to listen to. Chuck's interviewing style allows the guests to delve deep into their expertise and share their knowledge with listeners. It's refreshing to hear interviews that are not scripted or focused on the host, but instead give ample time for the guest's perspective.
However, one potential downside of this podcast is that it may not be for everyone. The host's voice and cadence may remind some listeners of a late-night paranormal radio show, which could be off-putting for those looking for a more traditional interview format. Additionally, the subject matter can be heavy at times, discussing topics such as neoliberal capitalism and humanitarian crises. While this depth of analysis is appealing to many, it may not be suitable for all listeners.
In conclusion, The This Is Hell! podcast offers stimulating interviews with interesting guests on a wide range of topics. Its commitment to providing in-depth discussions without focusing on the host's ego sets it apart from other podcasts. While its unique style may not appeal to everyone, those interested in thought-provoking conversations on progressive issues will find this podcast to be an invaluable resource.
Vicky Osterweil joins us to discuss her new book, "The Extended Universe How Disney Killed the Movies and Took Over the World" from Haymarket Books: https://www.haymarketbooks.org/books/2525-the-extended-universe "The Moment of Truth" with Jeff Dorchen follows the interview. Help keep This Is Hell! completely listener supported and access bonus episodes by subscribing to our Patreon: www.patreon.com/thisishell
American Immigration Council's Nayna Gupta and Aaron Reichlin-Melnick join This Is Hell! to discuss their report, "Immigration Detention Expansion in Trump's Second Term”. https://www.americanimmigrationcouncil.org/report/immigration-detention/ Nayna Gupta is an immigration attorney, policy expert, and the current Policy Director at the American Immigration Council. Based in Washington, D.C., she leads the Council's legislative, administrative, and policy advocacy portfolio. Her work primarily focuses on immigration enforcement, the U.S. immigration detention system, and the intersection of criminal law and immigration civil policy. She is a frequent commentator on major networks like Al Jazeera, analyzing mass deportation strategies and federal immigration expenditures. Aaron Reichlin-Melnick is a Senior Fellow at the American Immigration Council. He previously worked as a Staff Attorney at the Council, working on impact litigation, Freedom of Information Act litigations, and practice advisories. Prior to joining the Council, he was an Immigrant Justice Corps Fellow placed as a Staff Attorney at the Immigration Law Unit of The Legal Aid Society in New York City, representing immigrants placed in removal proceedings because of a prior criminal conviction. Aaron holds a J.D. from the Georgetown University Law Center and a B.A. in Politics and East Asian Studies from Brandeis University. Help keep This Is Hell! completely listener supported and access bonus episodes by subscribing to our Patreon: www.patreon.com/thisishell
American Immigration Council's Nayna Gupta and Aaron Reichlin-Melnick join This Is Hell! to discuss their report, "Immigration Detention Expansion in Trump's Second Term”. https://www.americanimmigrationcouncil.org/report/immigration-detention/ Nayna Gupta is an immigration attorney, policy expert, and the current Policy Director at the American Immigration Council. Based in Washington, D.C., she leads the Council's legislative, administrative, and policy advocacy portfolio. Her work primarily focuses on immigration enforcement, the U.S. immigration detention system, and the intersection of criminal law and immigration civil policy. She is a frequent commentator on major networks like Al Jazeera, analyzing mass deportation strategies and federal immigration expenditures. Aaron Reichlin-Melnick is a Senior Fellow at the American Immigration Council. He previously worked as a Staff Attorney at the Council, working on impact litigation, Freedom of Information Act litigations, and practice advisories. Prior to joining the Council, he was an Immigrant Justice Corps Fellow placed as a Staff Attorney at the Immigration Law Unit of The Legal Aid Society in New York City, representing immigrants placed in removal proceedings because of a prior criminal conviction. Aaron holds a J.D. from the Georgetown University Law Center and a B.A. in Politics and East Asian Studies from Brandeis University. We will have new installments of Rotten History and Hangover Cure. We will also be sharing your answers to this week's Question from Hell! from Patreon. Help keep This Is Hell! completely listener supported and access bonus episodes by subscribing to our Patreon: www.patreon.com/thisishell
Sociologist Michelle Phelps joins us to discuss her book, "The Minneapolis Reckoning: Race, Violence, and the Politics of Policing in America": https://press.princeton.edu/books/hardcover/9780691245980/the-minneapolis-reckoning
Educator and author Arjun Jayadev joins This Is Hell! to talk about the new book published by The University Of Chicago Press that he co-wrote with J.W. Mason called “Against Money”, which talks about how money has gotten to dominate the lives of humans world wide as it become the most influential human creation. https://press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/chicago/A/bo265118979.html Arjun Jayadev is professor of economics and director of the Centre for the Study of the Indian Economy at Azim Premji University in India. He has previously taught at the University of Massachusetts-Boston. He is also a Senior Economist at the Institute for New Economic Thinking. His research combines quantitative and theoretical analysis of Finance, Development, Political Economy and Intellectual Property. He is also a fellow at the Groundwork Collective. https://groundworkcollaborative.org/ We will have new installments of Rotten History and Hangover Cure. We will also be sharing your answers to this week's Question from Hell! from Patreon. Help keep This Is Hell! completely listener supported and access bonus episodes by subscribing to our Patreon: www.patreon.com/thisishell
Due to an unexpected rescheduling of a guest, we present a rare mailbag episode that delves into our esteemed listeners' questions and insights. "The Moment of Truth" with Jeff Dorchen follows the interview. No producers were harmed in the making of this episode. Help keep This Is Hell! completely listener supported and access bonus episodes by subscribing to our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/thisishell Please rate and review This Is Hell! wherever you get your podcasts. It really helps the show ascend the algorithm to reach new listeners.
Journalist and author Daniel Trilling returns to This Is Hell! to talk about his new book “If We Tolerate This: How the British establishment made the far right respectable”, published by Pan Macmillan. This is Daniel's fourth appearance on the show. Daniel was shortlisted for the 2022 and 2023 Orwell Prizes, for his writing focused on homelessness, human rights and politics. His work has also been shortlisted for the Political Book Awards and the Bread and Roses Award for Radical Publishing. Daniel is also an associate lecturer in journalism at London College of Communication, where he helps with the Refugee Journalism Project, a training and mentoring scheme for exiled media workers in the UK, which you can learn more about at refugeejournalismproject.org. Link to purchase Daniel Trilling's new book https://www.panmacmillan.com/authors/daniel-trilling/if-we-tolerate-this/9781037411571 We will have new installments of Rotten History and Hangover Cure. We will also be sharing your answers to this week's Question from Hell! from Patreon. Help keep This Is Hell! completely listener supported and access bonus episodes by subscribing to our Patreon: www.patreon.com/thisishell
Tanvi Misra returns to discuss her new piece at Jewish Currents, " The Death of Asylum: How centuries of efforts to deny refuge to persecuted people paved way for authoritarianism." "The Moment of Truth" with Jeff Dorchen follows the interview. Check out Tanvi's essay here: https://jewishcurrents.org/the-death-of-asylum Help keep This Is Hell! completely listener supported and access bonus episodes by subscribing to our Patreon: www.patreon.com/thisishell
Shana Marshall joins This Is Hell! to talk about her new piece for Security In Context titled “A Violent Convergence: How Silicon Valley and Private Finance Are Reshaping War”. Shana Marshall is Associate Director of the Institute for Middle East Studies and Assistant Research Faculty member at the George Washington University's Elliott School of International Affairs. Her work has been published by The Middle East Report, The International Journal of Middle East Studies, Middle East Policy, Jadaliyya, the Carnegie Middle East Center, and various edited volumes. Help keep This Is Hell! completely listener supported and access bonus episodes by subscribing to our Patreon: www.patreon.com/thisishell https://www.securityincontext.org/team/shana-marshall
Shana Marshall joins This Is Hell! to talk about her new piece for Security In Context titled “A Violent Convergence: How Silicon Valley and Private Finance Are Reshaping War”. Shana Marshall is Associate Director of the Institute for Middle East Studies and Assistant Research Faculty member at the George Washington University's Elliott School of International Affairs. Her work has been published by The Middle East Report, The International Journal of Middle East Studies, Middle East Policy, Jadaliyya, the Carnegie Middle East Center, and various edited volumes. We will have new installments of Rotten History and Hangover Cure. We will also be sharing your answers to this week's Question from Hell! from Patreon. Help keep This Is Hell! completely listener supported and access bonus episodes by subscribing to our Patreon: www.patreon.com/thisishell https://www.securityincontext.org/team/shana-marshall
Leila Al-Shami returns with co-author Benjamin to discuss their new book by The People's Want, "Revolutions of Our Times: An Internationalist Manifesto" (Haymarket Books). "The Moment of Truth" with Jeff Dorchen follows the interview. Check out the new book from The People's Want: https://www.haymarketbooks.org/books/2732-revolutions-of-our-times Help keep This Is Hell! completely listener supported and access bonus episodes by subscribing to our Patreon: www.patreon.com/thisishell
Rakeem Mabud speaks with This Is Hell! about her new essay for Common Wealth that she co-wrote with Melanie Brusseler titled “The Power Grab: The Authoritarian Coalition's Strategy of Power Consolidation”. https://www.common-wealth.org/publications/the-power-grab Rakeen is an expert on how economic trends impact people's everyday lives. She was most recently the Chief Economist at Groundwork Collaborative, and has also held roles in the US Treasury Department, Roosevelt Institute and Time's Up. She holds a PhD in Government from Harvard University, and a BA from Wellesley College. We will have new installments of Rotten History and Hangover Cure. We will also be sharing your answers to this week's Question from Hell! from Patreon. Help keep This Is Hell! completely listener supported and access bonus episodes by subscribing to our Patreon: www.patreon.com/thisishell
Quinn Slobodian returns with his co-author, Ben Tarnoff, to discuss their just-published book from Harper Collins, "Muskism: A Guide for the Perplexed." "The Moment of Truth" with Jeff Dorchen follows the interview. Check out Quinn and Ben's book here: https://www.harpercollins.com/products/muskism-quinn-slobodianben-tarnoff?variant=43838135402530 Help keep This Is Hell! completely listener supported and access bonus episodes by subscribing to our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/thisishell Please rate and review This Is Hell! wherever you get your podcasts. It really helps the show ascend the algorithm to reach new listeners.
Paige Warren, Co-Chair of the SEIU 73 Faculty Forward Union at Loyola, joins us to update us on the next steps Loyola University Chicago non-tenure-track faculty are taking for a fair contract after the passage of a strike authorization vote. This follows 14 months of bargaining with a stonewalling, corporatized administration. Paige is an Adjunct Instructor in the Department of English at Loyola University Chicago.
intellectual historian A.J.A. Woods, author of, “The Cultural Marxism Conspiracy: Why the Right Blames the Frankfurt School for the Decline of the West" (Verso Books) discusses their book on the day it is published. A.J.A.'s writings on conspiracy theories and reactionary politics have been translated into four languages and appeared in Open Democracy, Patterns of Prejudice, and Marx & Philosophy Review of Books. Check out A.J.A.'s book here: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/804696/the-cultural-marxism-conspiracy-by-aja-woods/ "Rotten History" from Renaldo Migaldi follows the interview. After all that, we receive an update from Loyola University Chicago SEIU 73 Faculty Forward co-chair Paige Warren about next steps bargaining for a fair contract for non-tenture-track faculty with a corporatized university after a successful strike authorization vote. Help keep This Is Hell! completely listener supported and access bonus episodes by subscribing to our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/thisishell Please rate and review This Is Hell! wherever you get your podcasts. It really helps the show ascend the algorithm to reach new listeners.d
Members of the leadership team of the SEIU 73 Faculty Forward Union representing non-tenure-track faculty in the College of Arts and Sciences at Loyola University Chicago update us on their 14-month-old fight for a fair contract. NTT faculty Matt Williams, Paige Warren, Sarita Heer, and Deb Goodman discuss the precarity and exploitation facing faculty at Loyola and on campuses across the United States and the union's efforts to bargain collectively at a corporatized university. We will follow up with them next Tuesday after strike authorization votes have been tallied. "The Moment of Truth" with Jeff Dorchen follows the interview. You can follow their struggle at the SEIU 73 website: https://seiu73.org/updates/loyola-university-updates/ and in the Loyola Phoenix's ongoing coverage: https://loyolaphoenix.com/2026/04/faculty-shares-grievances-with-new-administrative-policies/ Help keep This Is Hell! completely listener supported and access bonus episodes by subscribing to our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/thisishell Please rate and review This Is Hell! wherever you get your podcasts. It really helps the show ascend the algorithm to reach new listeners.
Nelly Madegwa is co-author of The Intercept story supported by the Pulitzer Center, "Where There Is Salt: An American Company Drilled for Oil in Kenya — and Left Behind Soaring Cancer Rates," which she co-wrote with Georgia Gee. Nelly is an award-winning journalist from Kenya whose reporting covers climate change, sustainable development, health, and human rights across Africa. She writes frequently from a gender perspective on issues ranging from public health to sexual violence Her work has appeared in The Elephant, Minority Africa, taz, and Africa Uncensored. Her storytelling blends investigative and data-driven reporting with human-interest narratives. Nelly is a Pulitzer Center Persephone Miel Fellow. https://theintercept.com/2026/04/06/amoco-bp-oil-kargi-kenya-cancer/ She was first runner-up in the 2021 African Journalist Gender Equality Awards. She also holds a certificate in explanatory journalism from the Knight Center. We will have new installments of Rotten History and Hangover Cure. We will also be sharing your answers to this week's Question from Hell! from Patreon. Help keep This Is Hell! completely listener supported and access bonus episodes by subscribing to our Patreon: www.patreon.com/thisishell
Henry Burke of the Revolving Door Project joins us to discuss his recent writing, "How OpenAI Hacked The Military-Industrial Complex" at The Lever and, "Centrists: Better Things Aren't Possible" at The American Prospect. "The Moment of Truth" with Jeff Dorchen follows the interview. Check out Henry's articles here: https://www.levernews.com/how-openai-hacked-the-military-industrial-complex/ and here: https://prospect.org/2026/03/10/centrists-better-things-arent-possible-democrats-south-carolina-third-way/ Help keep This Is Hell! completely listener supported and access bonus episodes by subscribing to our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/thisishell Please rate and review This Is Hell! wherever you get your podcasts. It really helps the show ascend the algorithm to reach new listeners.
Research associate at the Institute of East European Studies, Freie Universität Berlin and sociologist Volodymyr Ishchenko returns to discuss the Russia-Ukraine war and many of the misconceptions we may have regarding the ongoing conflict. His writing has appeared in The Guardian, Al Jazeera, Jacobin and New Left Review. He is the author of “Towards the Abyss: Ukraine from Maidan to War”, published by Verso Books. We will have new installments of Rotten History and Hangover Cure. We will also be sharing your answers to this week's Question from Hell! from Patreon. Help keep This Is Hell! completely listener supported and access bonus episodes by subscribing to our Patreon: www.patreon.com/thisishell
Andy Worthington returns to the show to discuss his recent writing, including "The Horrors of AI-Driven Military Targeting, From Gaza to Iran," and "900 Days of Genocide in Gaza." "The Moment of Truth" with Jeff Dorchen follows the interview. Check out Andy's writing at his website: https://www.andyworthington.co.uk/ Help keep This Is Hell! completely listener supported and access bonus episodes by subscribing to our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/thisishell Please rate and review This Is Hell! wherever you get your podcasts. It really helps the show ascend the algorithm to reach new listeners.
Author, Executive Director of San Antonio Bay Estuarine Waterkeepers, and Goldman Prize winner Diane Wilson returns to This Is Hell! to talk about her ongoing hunger strike to protest Dow's environmental damage to San Antonio Bay and the surrounding community.
Author, Executive Director of San Antonio Bay Estuarine Waterkeepers, and Goldman Prize winner Diane Wilson returns to This Is Hell! to talk about her ongoing hunger strike to protest Dow's environmental damage to San Antonio Bay and the surrounding community. We will have new installments of Rotten History and Hangover Cure. We will also be sharing your answers to this week's Question from Hell! from Patreon. Help keep This Is Hell! completely listener supported and access bonus episodes by subscribing to our Patreon: www.patreon.com/thisishell
While Chuck is away this week undergoing physical therapy, we are featuring some of your favorite interviews of 2026 so far. This time, we revisit our January 15th conversation with Séamus Malekafzali. He joined us to discuss his recent piece at The Nation, "The Assassination That Paved the Way for Trump's Venezuela Attack: How Trump's illegal 2020 killing of Qassem Soleimani—and the West's indifferent response—laid the groundwork for the brazen abduction of Nicolás Maduro." Check out the article here: https://www.thenation.com/article/world/trump-soleimani-venezuela-maduro/ Help keep This Is Hell! completely listener supported and access bonus episodes by subscribing to our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/thisishell Please rate and review This Is Hell! wherever you get your podcasts. It really helps the show ascend the algorithm to reach new listeners.
While Chuck is away for the week to endure the torture of physical therapy, we revisit your favorite interviews of 2026 so far. In this episode, we revisit your most-suggested interview, Chuck's January 27th conversation with Clara Mattei. Clara is professor of economics at The University of Tulsa and the Founding President of FREE—the Forum for Real Economic Emancipation. She joined us to discuss her new book, "Escape from Capitalism: An Intervention,” from Simon & Shuster. Score your copy of "Escape from Capitalism" here: https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Escape-from-Capitalism/Clara-E-Mattei/9781668085141 Help keep This Is Hell! completely listener supported and access bonus episodes by subscribing to our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/thisishell Please rate and review This Is Hell! wherever you get your podcasts. It really helps the show ascend the algorithm to reach new listeners.
Twenty-two years after last joining us, we welcome back Mohamad Bazzi. He discusses his latest at the Guardian, "Trump promised no wars. Now he's a Bush-style regime change president," and "Trump's war in Iran marks the culmination of his imperial presidency." "The Moment of Truth" with Jeff Dorchen follows the interview in which he, "fights to wake up from a DARVOnian nightmare." Check out Mohamad's latest writing at the Guardian here: https://www.theguardian.com/profile/mohamad-bazzi Help keep This Is Hell! completely listener supported and access bonus episodes by subscribing to our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/thisishell Please rate and review This Is Hell! wherever you get your podcasts. It really helps the show ascend the algorithm to reach new listeners.
Brian Mier returns to This Is Hell! to discuss his new writing at his Substack, De-Linking Brazil, "30 Days in Venezuela." "Rotten History" from Renaldo Migaldi follows the interview. Check out Brian's report here: https://bmier.substack.com/p/30-days-in-venezuela Help keep This Is Hell! completely listener supported and access bonus episodes by subscribing to our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/thisishell Please rate and review This Is Hell! wherever you get your podcasts. It really helps the show ascend the algorithm to reach new listeners.
Laleh Khalili returns to discuss her new piece at the London Review of Books, "Guns, Money and Opium." "The Moment of Truth" with Jeff Dorchen follows the interview. Check out Laleh's article here: https://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v48/n03/laleh-khalili/guns-money-and-opium Help keep This Is Hell! completely listener supported and access bonus episodes by subscribing to our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/thisishell Please rate and review This Is Hell! wherever you get your podcasts. It really helps the show ascend the algorithm to reach new listeners.
Academic and writer Timothy Mitchell joins This Is Hell! to talk about his new book his new book "The Alibi of Capital: How We Broke the Earth to Steal the Future on the Promise of a Better Tomorrow”, published by Verso Books (https://www.versobooks.com/products/3452-the-alibi-of-capital). Mitchell is the William B. Ransford Professor of Middle Eastern Studies at Columbia University. His is based in the Department of Middle Eastern, South Asian, and African Studies. We will have new installments of Rotten History and Hangover Cure. We will also be sharing your answers to this week's Question from Hell! from Patreon. Help keep This Is Hell! completely listener supported and access bonus episodes by subscribing to our Patreon: www.patreon.com/thisishell
Caroline Light joins us to discuss her book, "Stand Your Ground: A History of America's Love Affair with Lethal Self-Defense." A 10th anniversary edition with a new introduction and a preface by Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz is now available from Beacon Press. "The Moment of Truth" with Jeff Dorchen follows the interview. Check out Caroline's book here: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/815354/stand-your-ground-by-caroline-light/ Help keep This Is Hell! completely listener supported and access bonus episodes by subscribing to our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/thisishell Please rate and review This Is Hell! wherever you get your podcasts. It really helps the show ascend the algorithm to reach new listeners.
Alex de Waal returns to discuss his recent writing in the series, "World War X" from the World Peace Foundation. "Rotten History" from Renaldo Migaldi follows the interview. Check out Alex's series here: https://worldpeacefoundation.org/topic/world-war-x/ Help keep This Is Hell! completely listener supported and access bonus episodes by subscribing to our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/thisishell Please rate and review This Is Hell! wherever you get your podcasts. It really helps the show ascend the algorithm to reach new listeners.
Journalist and author Julie K. Brown from the Miami Herald's Investigative Team, joins This Is Hell! to talk about her work uncovering and investigating the Epstein Files, which can be found on her Substack, jkbjournalist.substack.com, where she is still breaking new stories on the case. We will have new installments of Rotten History and Hangover Cure. We will also be sharing your answers to this week's Question from Hell! from Patreon. Help keep This Is Hell! completely listener supported and access bonus episodes by subscribing to our Patreon: www.patreon.com/thisishell
Award-winning climate and environment journalist Whitney Bauck discusses her latest at the Guardian, "The criminalizing of protest and dissent has a long history in America." Our conversation will also cover her previous posts describing "How activism is tackling the US loneliness epidemic," and "How US cities are helping each other resist ICE." Checkout Whitney's recent Guardian pieces here: https://www.theguardian.com/profile/whitney-bauck Whitney currently serves as a contributing writer for the Guardian, and previously served as print editor at the climate and culture magazine Atmos.
Kim Kelly, author of, "Fight Like Hell: The Untold History of American Labor," (Atria Books) host of "Unite and Win: A Guide to Workplace Organizing" podcast at workerorganizing.org, speaks with This Is Hell! to discuss her writing at The Baffler, "A Piece of Work: The Department of Labor's anti-immigrant turn betrays its history." Kim Kelly is a labor reporter for In These Times magazine and has been a regular labor columnist for Teen Vogue since 2018. Her writing on labor, class, politics, disability, and culture has appeared in The Nation, The Washington Post, The New York Times, The Baffler, The New Republic, Rolling Stone, Esquire, and many others. Kelly has also worked as a video correspondent for More Perfect Union, The Real News Network, and Means TV. Previously, she was the heavy metal editor at Noisey, Vice's music vertical, and helped organize the Vice union. A third-generation union member, she served three terms as an elected councilperson for the Writers Guild of America, East Council. Her first book, Fight Like Hell: The Untold History of American Labor, was published in 2022, and the young readers edition, Fight to Win! Heroes of American Labor, was published by Simon & Schuster Kids in 2025. Help keep This Is Hell! completely listener supported and access bonus episodes by subscribing to our Patreon: www.patreon.com/thisishell
Kim Kelly, author of, "Fight Like Hell: The Untold History of American Labor," (Atria Books) host of "Unite and Win: A Guide to Workplace Organizing" podcast at workerorganizing.org, speaks with This Is Hell! to discuss her writing at The Baffler, "A Piece of Work: The Department of Labor's anti-immigrant turn betrays its history." Kim Kelly is a labor reporter for In These Times magazine and has been a regular labor columnist for Teen Vogue since 2018. Her writing on labor, class, politics, disability, and culture has appeared in The Nation, The Washington Post, The New York Times, The Baffler, The New Republic, Rolling Stone, Esquire, and many others. Kelly has also worked as a video correspondent for More Perfect Union, The Real News Network, and Means TV. Previously, she was the heavy metal editor at Noisey, Vice's music vertical, and helped organize the Vice union. A third-generation union member, she served three terms as an elected councilperson for the Writers Guild of America, East Council. Her first book, Fight Like Hell: The Untold History of American Labor, was published in 2022, and the young readers edition, Fight to Win! Heroes of American Labor, was published by Simon & Schuster Kids in 2025. We will have new installments of Rotten History and Hangover Cure. We will also be sharing your answers to this week's Question from Hell! from Patreon. Help keep This Is Hell! completely listener supported and access bonus episodes by subscribing to our Patreon: www.patreon.com/thisishell
Nicole Foy joins us to discuss her recent reporting at ProPublica, including "We Found More Than 40 Cases of Immigration Agents Using Banned Chokeholds and Other Moves That Can Cut Off Breathing." "The Moment of Truth" with Jeff Dorchen follows the interview. Check out Nicole's articles at ProPublica here: https://www.propublica.org/people/nicole-foy Help keep This Is Hell! completely listener supported and access bonus episodes by subscribing to our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/thisishell Please rate and review This Is Hell! wherever you get your podcasts. It really helps the show ascend the algorithm to reach new listeners.
Judith Enck, joins This Is Hell! to talk about the book that she recently co-authored of, "The Problem with Plastic: How We Can Save Ourselves and Our Planet Before It's Too Late”, published by The New Press. https://thenewpress.org/books/the-problem-with-plastic/?v=eb65bcceaa5f Judith is the founder and president of Beyond Plastics, whose goal is eliminating plastic pollution everywhere. In 2009, she was appointed by President Obama to serve as regional administrator at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and served as deputy secretary for the environment in the New York Governor's Office. She is currently a professor at Bennington College, where she teaches classes on plastic pollution. https://www.beyondplastics.org/ We will have new installments of Rotten History and Hangover Cure. We will also be sharing your answers to this week's Question from Hell! from Patreon. Help keep This Is Hell! completely listener supported and access bonus episodes by subscribing to our Patreon: www.patreon.com/thisishell
Historian Alfred McCoy joins us to discuss his new book, "Cold War on Five Continents: A Global History of Empire and Espionage" from Haymarket Books. "The Moment of Truth" with Jeff Dorchen follows the interview. Check out Alfred's book here: https://www.haymarketbooks.org/books/2631-cold-war-on-five-continents Help keep This Is Hell! completely listener supported and access bonus episodes by subscribing to our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/thisishell Please rate and review This Is Hell! wherever you get your podcasts. It really helps the show ascend the algorithm to reach new listeners.
Clara E. Mattei, a professor of economics at The University of Tulsa. She is the Founding President of FREE—the Forum for Real Economic Emancipation (https://www.freefreeforum.org/)—and the author of "The Capital Order”, which was praised by The Financial Times as one of the ten best economics books of 2022 and has been translated into over a dozen languages. Clara joins This Is Hell! to talk about her new book, "Escape from Capitalism: An Intervention”, by Simon & Shuster. https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Escape-from-Capitalism/Clara-E-Mattei/9781668085141 We will have new installments of Rotten History and Hangover Cure. We will also be sharing your answers to this week's Question from Hell! from Patreon. Help keep This Is Hell! completely listener supported and access bonus episodes by subscribing to our Patreon: www.patreon.com/thisishell
Séamus Malekafzali returns to discuss his recent piece at The Nation, "The Assassination That Paved the Way for Trump's Venezuela Attack: How Trump's illegal 2020 killing of Qassem Soleimani—and the West's indifferent response—laid the groundwork for the brazen abduction of Nicolás Maduro." "The Moment of Truth" with Jeff Dorchen follows the interview. Check out Séamus' article here: https://www.thenation.com/article/world/trump-soleimani-venezuela-maduro/ Help keep This Is Hell! completely listener supported and access bonus episodes by subscribing to our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/thisishell Please rate and review This Is Hell! wherever you get your podcasts. It really helps the show ascend the algorithm to reach new listeners.
Maureen Tkacik makes her debut on This Is Hell! to talk about her new investigative piece for American Prospect, “The Narco Terrorist Elite”, which goes into how narco terrorists have historically operated with right wing Latin American dictatorships and US imperialism and how Marco Rubio's recent actions within the Trump administration might become a new version of Iran-Contra. https://prospect.org/2025/12/23/narco-terrorist-elite-rubio-south-america-iran-contra/ We will have new installments of Rotten History and Hangover Cure. We will also be sharing your answers to this week's Question from Hell! from Patreon. Help keep This Is Hell! completely listener supported and access bonus episodes by subscribing to our Patreon: www.patreon.com/thisishell
Terence Keel returns to discuss his new book from Beacon Press, "The Coroner's Silence: Death Records and the Hidden Victims of Police Violence." "The Moment of Truth" with Jeff Dorchen follows the interview. Check out Terence's book here: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/790545/the-coroners-silence-by-terence-keel/ Help keep This Is Hell! completely listener supported and access bonus episodes by subscribing to our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/thisishell Please rate and review This Is Hell! wherever you get your podcasts. It really helps the show ascend the algorithm to reach new listeners.
Sarah Lazare returns to This Is Hell! to talk about her new In These Times piece “They Worked Underground in the Uranium Mines. They've Been Surrounded by Death Ever Since”. Sarah investigates how the uranium industry left a trail of sickness and loss through Navajo territory while President Trump is pushing for another mining boom. We will have new installments of Rotten History and Hangover Cure. We will also be sharing your answers to this week's Question from Hell! from Patreon. Help keep This Is Hell! completely listener supported and access bonus episodes by subscribing to our Patreon: www.patreon.com/thisishell
Daniel Trilling returns to discuss his new Equator piece, "Inside the BBC's Gaza Fiasco: How the world's most trusted media organisation fell apart." Check out Daniel's article here: https://www.equator.org/articles/inside-the-bbc-s-gaza-fiasco Help keep This Is Hell! completely listener supported and access bonus episodes by subscribing to our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/thisishell Please rate and review This Is Hell! wherever you get your podcasts. It really helps the show ascend the algorithm to reach new listeners.
Quincy Institute scholars William Hartung and Ben Freeman join us to discuss their new book from Bold Type Books, "The Trillion Dollar War Machine: How Runaway Military Spending Drives America into Foreign Wars and Bankrupts Us at Home." "The Moment of Truth" with Jeff Dorchen follows the interview. Check out William and Ben's book here: https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/william-d-hartung/the-trillion-dollar-war-machine/9781645030638/ Help keep This Is Hell! completely listener supported and access bonus episodes by subscribing to our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/thisishell Please rate and review This Is Hell! wherever you get your podcasts. It really helps the show ascend the algorithm to reach new listeners.
Professor Emeritus and pro footballer Michael Oriard joins us to discuss his new book from University of North Carolina Press, "Sanctioned Savagery: A History of Violence in American Football." "The Moment of Truth" with Jeff Dorchen follows the interview. Check out Michael's book here: https://uncpress.org/9781469690667/sanctioned-savagery/ Help keep This Is Hell! completely listener supported and access bonus episodes by subscribing to our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/thisishell Please rate and review This Is Hell! wherever you get your podcasts. It really helps the show ascend the algorithm to reach new listeners.
Richard Seymour returns to This Is Hell! to talk about his new book "Disaster Nationalism: The Downfall of Liberal Civilization”, published by Verso Books. Seymour discusses the ideologies amplifying the contemporary right that is distorting modern politics into a nihilistic disaster nationalism. We will have new installments of Rotten History and Hangover Cure. We will also be sharing your answers to this week's Question from Hell! from Patreon. Help keep This Is Hell! completely listener supported and access bonus episodes by subscribing to our Patreon: www.patreon.com/thisishell
Legal scholar Ray Madoff joins us to discuss her new book from the University of Chicago Press, "The Second Estate: How the Tax Code Made an American Aristocracy." "The Moment of Truth" with Jeff Dorchen follows the interview. Check out Ray's book here: https://press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/chicago/S/bo256019296.html Help keep This Is Hell! completely listener supported and access bonus episodes by subscribing to our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/thisishell Please rate and review This Is Hell! wherever you get your podcasts. It really helps the show ascend the algorithm to reach new listeners.
Bianca Tylek speaks to This Is Hell! about “The Prison Industry: How It Works and Who Profits" that is published by the New Press. Bianca Tylek is one of the nation's leading experts on the prison industry and is the Founder and Executive Director of Worth Rises, a national non-profit dismantling the prison industry and ending the exploitation of those it touches. Bianca's work has been covered by the New York Times, Washington Post, the Atlantic, NPR, The Nation, Mother Jones, CNN, CNBC, Bloomberg, and more. Help keep This Is Hell! completely listener supported and access bonus episodes by subscribing to our Patreon: www.patreon.com/thisishell
Bianca Tylek speaks to This Is Hell! about “The Prison Industry: How It Works and Who Profits" that is published by the New Press. Bianca Tylek is one of the nation's leading experts on the prison industry and is the Founder and Executive Director of Worth Rises, a national non-profit dismantling the prison industry and ending the exploitation of those it touches. Bianca's work has been covered by the New York Times, Washington Post, the Atlantic, NPR, The Nation, Mother Jones, CNN, CNBC, Bloomberg, and more. We will have new installments of Rotten History and Hangover Cure. We will also be sharing your answers to this week's Question from Hell! from Patreon. Help keep This Is Hell! completely listener supported and access bonus episodes by subscribing to our Patreon: www.patreon.com/thisishell
Writer and researcher Sasha Davis speaks to This Is Hell! to talk about his new book “Replace The State: How To Change The World When Elections And Protests Fail”, published by University of Minnesota Press. The book talks about bringing new hope for social justice movements by looking to progressive campaigns that have found success by unconventional, and more direct, means since elections and protests might have become stagnated in regards to bring forth societal change. (https://www.upress.umn.edu/9781517919528/replace-the-state/) Help keep This Is Hell! completely listener supported and access bonus episodes by subscribing to our Patreon: www.patreon.com/thisishell
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